The board of Vodafone Idea has approved fundraising of ₹20,000 crore to support the telecom firm’s plan to expand its network and roll out 5G services in more cities. This comes at a time when Vodafone Idea has laid out a long-term capital expenditure plan of around ₹50,000 crore.

“The board has authorised the capital raising committee to evaluate and decide the potential route of fundraising, including all related matters,” said a stock exchange filing following the completion of the board meeting late on Friday. Various options for fundraising, including further public offerings, private placements, and convertible securities, among others, will be under consideration.

The capital raising decision comes at a time when the losses of the telecom major have narrowed to ₹7166.1 crore in Q4FY25 from ₹7674.6 crore in Q4FY24. For FY25, the losses have narrowed to ₹27383.4 crore from ₹31238.4 crore
in FY24.

“This has been a turnaround quarter for us, marked by the highest average daily revenue in the past 5 years and a significant reduction in subscriber loss. Early indicators show improvement across business metrics, and with our ongoing investments, we are well placed to effectively participate in the growth opportunity offered by the industry,” said Akshaya Moondra, CEO, Vodafone Idea.

Having rolled out 5G services in Mumbai, Delhi, Chandigarh and Patna, around 17 circles where Vodafone Idea has 5G spectrum are expected to be covered by August 2025.

The company has spent ₹4,230 crore in Q4FY25, its highest capex in a quarter since the merger, taking the aggregate capex for FY25 at ₹9,570 crore. However, only equity raising will not be enough to support the expansion, and the telecom firm has to secure debt financing. The government’s decision to convert spectrum dues into equity, coupled with the possibility of a hike in tariffs later this fiscal, has improved prospects.

“We welcome the government’s decision for conversion of ₹36,950 crore spectrum dues into equity. We remain engaged with the lenders to secure debt financing to support our broader capex plan of ₹50,000-55,000 crore,” Moondra said.

In its exchange filing, Vodafone Idea has said that as of March 31, 2025, the group’s outstanding debt from banks is ₹2,345.1 crore and deferred payment obligation towards spectrum, payable till FY2044 and towards AGR payable till FY2031, aggregates to ₹1,94,910.6 crore.